my family wont speak to me in fear OF MY LITTLE GERMAN SHEP PUPPY BITING MY DAUGHTER YOUR OPINIONS PLEASE?

Question

i have just purchased a gsd puppy and my family wont talk to me due to this are they right to react like this my daughter is just 15 minths old but still are they just being silly and over reacting

Answer 1

Maybe they had bad experiences with dogs before? The puppy must be trained very well to never show any signs of aggression towards your daughter. He could play rough and hurt her not knowing any better but I do think they are being silly and over reacting. I have never owned GSD's and I'm not sure if they are recommended for young children or not. I have seen families with adult GSDs and toddlers in which the baby pretty much rode around on his back and tugged at his ears and the dog was fine with it.

On the other hand the GSD has the highest incidence of biting of any US recongized breed. Followed by chows and then pitt bulls. But that is likely do to either neglect of training or the breeds innate protection instincts. I don't think (not completely sure) that they have a high incidence of biting family. In poorly trained dogs they can mistake someone walking by or getting too close to the fence as an intruder.

If you train your dog from puppyhood to accept your daughter and be extra gentle I think it will be ok. The only thing I would really worry about is the pup playing too rough especially in a a few months to a year when your daughter will be more active in playing with him.

Answer 2

They are alpha dogs, which are dominant by nature and need a firm hand as an owner. With proper training any dog can be a good dog and vice versa. Enroll in puppy classes and teach the pup some basic obedience, and teach yourself how to be the leader. Another thing that sets some people's mind at ease is spaying or neutering. Dogs only bite people when they are not trained properly and you have show the puppy too that your daughter and you both are above her in the house. I had a roommate with a german shepherd and he was a great dog just hairy and shedded quite a bit. Also make sure if he/she is mouthing your hand (play biting) that is a sign of dominance even in puppies and make sure you dont let her do it. Other than the hairy part they are good dogs with proper training. Your family needs to do some research on the dogs before they judge.

Answer 3

Obedience training is a good idea, just be very careful in who you choose to do it. Many individuals still use the old school methods of hitting, pinch collars, choke collard, etc. None of these techniques are recommended any more. As they are cruel and inhumane and have a tendency to make the animal mean, scared, and defensive.
Also, do some research on the internet and find sites that talk specifically about your breed. Share this info with your family. Let them be around the dog as much as possible so that they will see that it isn't mean.
I know some sites for Pits, you may be able to find info at these sites for GS.
www.dogbreedinfo.com
www.bless-the-bullys.tripod.com
www.americanhumane.com
www.realpitbull.com
www.petrescue.com

Remind your family that it is not the breed that is at fault, it is the irresponsible owners of these dogs that cause the problems.

Blame the deed, not the breed!

Answer 4

A well-socialized and well-trained German shepherd is about the *last* dog that would bite a child. A poorly bred and trained GSD that's isolated from people is the one that you need to worry about. If you plan on working with your Shepherd, then your daughter will no doubt have a loyal and loving protector who'd rather die than hurt her.

Caveat: I always supervise any dog who is around children just to be on the safe side. But a badly trained Chihuahua is just as apt to bite as a German shepherd.

But the Shepherds I've owned have let children use them as stepstools, cushions, and "ponies". . .and the dogs have loved every minute of it. In fact, my current Shep, a little female named Jamie, is the neighborhood "training dog" for moms who want their kids to learn how to treat a pet properly!

Edit: Just remembered a cute story about my first Shepherd. I was outside, talking to a neighbor, and Cody was standing at my feet. The neighbor's 2 year old ran up and plowed into Cody, then sat down on her little padded bottom.

She wasn't hurt (and was laughing, in fact), but poor Cody immediately laid down and scrunched his eyes closed. He was soooo afraid that he'd done something to hurt the baby, and it took a lot of work to convince him that he hadn't done anything wrong.

Answer 5

Sorry about your family - their hearts are in the right place - they are worried about your daughter! They need education.

Both of our children were raised from the time they were babies with Dobermans, a breed with a similar reputation to the Shepherd's.

The dog(s) were taught to respect the children, and the children were *taught to respect the dog*! notice the emphasis.

Our first dobie seemed to know when our daughter was old enough to "know better". She put up with our daughter grabbing her ears, whatnot, but I was always right there, teaching my daughter to be kind to the dog. That dog protected our little girl and they were great friends.

My son wasn't as good with the dogs (by then we had two). I taught him also, but he just kept it up. Our dogs were very tolerant of him, and seemed to know I was trying to teach him, but when he was a toddler, he did something mean, and our dog growled at him. It gave him a good scare (and me too), but he didn't abuse that dog anymore! He WAS old enough to know better - and the dog made it very clear she was not to be abused.

That first dobie made a lot of friends for the doberman breed. She was loving, happy and absolutely wonderful with the kids. I also took her to obedience school, and ultimately she got her CD (Companion Dog in obedience). Later I began to show them, so they were all basically well trained.

It is of paramount importance, though, for the safety of your daughter that she is trained to be kind, and the dog is too.

Maybe you can sign up for obedience training with your puppy and take along some of these people who are upset with you. It's *great* fun! Once you educate your family that a well-trained shepherd is actually a wonderful children's pet, things will improve.

Good Luck!

(Oh and by the way, it is Chihuahuas, not GSDs that have the highest incidence of biting!!)

Answer 6

I raised German Shepherds for years. And I would worry about the puppy accidentally hurting your daughter. Knocking her down, taking stuff from her and such. Get the puppy in Obedience training and show your family what a good dog you have. They can be the most loyal and loving dogs, but they need to be trained. Good luck.

Answer 7

Unless this dog is prone to biting by previous owner I wouldn't worry I had 3 (one died) they r the best dogs in the world very protective of my children!!! I sold a puppy (german shephard) to a girl and her father and the dog is very protect of the daughter. As long as the dog is taught what u want them to do u will have the best pet in the world. Some dogs r naturally mean because of lack of care and the way they r brought up. If you take care of the dog the dog the dog will take care of u and ur family. Dogs r not bad people make them bad by mistreating them!!!! my youngest child is six and she could actually jump on my dogs(apart from my chihuahuas) and none of them would bite her!!!! You have a very wonderful breed of dog (german shephard) they r very loyal why do u think police use them!!!!

Answer 8

I guess the question is what they have against German Shepherds. They are usually such smart, sweet, loyal dogs. They want to protect their family, not bite them.
Did they have a bad experience with a German Shep? Maybe you should get them some reading material on the breed, so they can be reassured that they are good with families.

Answer 9

I understand their concern.Puppy teeth are very sharp but at 15 months so are your daughters.
I feel for you having to deal with 2 teething babies but with constant supervision and a simple "NO" in either direction whenever it's needed and neither should be any worse for wear.Tell your family if they're so concerned they should come and help supervise while you take a long bath or run an errand.The pup requires the same attention the child does pretty much.If they can't handle the pup then they should'nt be allowed to try to handle the child.

Answer 10

Of course you have to train the puppy very well-hopefully you're already starting that..Then get your family a load of info on dogs and German Shepherds...they are being dramatic about it so you need to make sure you can prove them wrong by really working with the puppy to ensure that it is almost perfect:)